The present invention relates to an articulated arm system for attaching different medical imaging devices to support structures in an articulated manner, the articulated arm comprising at least one parallelogram device with at least two mutually parallel strut bars; and a counterbalancing mechanism for holding the articulated arm and the device supported by it in place when the device is located in the desired imaging position. The counterbalancing mechanism preferably comprises at least one additional strut bar and counterbalancing means.
There are already articulated arm systems of the type mentioned in the introduction on the market, one problem with which is, however, the loosening of the springs and articulations with time, due to which the device will not, for example, remain in place during imaging, whereby the imaging result will obviously deteriorate. Accordingly, one important object of the present invention is to provide an improved articulated arm system for attaching different medical imaging devices, for example, devices for imaging the head area, such as intraoral and panoramic imaging devices, to support structures in an articulated manner, by means of which articulated arm system is ensured, through relatively simple measures, that the device will stay in place during imaging.
In order to achieve the objects of the invention, the articulated arm system according to the first aspect of the invention for attaching different medical imaging devices to support structures in an articulated manner, the articulated arm comprising at least one parallelogram device with at least two mutually parallel strut bars; and a counterbalancing mechanism for holding the articulated arm and the device supported by it in place when the device is located in the desired imaging position, is characterised in that the system further comprises braking and/or locking means which act on at least one strut bar of the said at least one parallelogram device and/or on the said at least one additional strut bar in order to prevent mutual linear movement of the strut bars of the parallelogram device, and which braking and/or locking means comprise actuators.
An articulated arm system relating to a second aspect of the invention for attaching different medical imaging devices to support structures in an articulated manner, the articulated arm comprising at least one parallelogram device with at least two mutually parallel strut bars; and a counterbalancing mechanism for holding the articulated arm and the device supported by it in place when the device is located in the desired imaging position, is characterised in that the counterbalancing mechanism is comprised of an air spring arranged between one strut bar and an articulated part, which spring can be locked into the desired position, thus preventing the mutual linear movement of the strut bars of the parallelogram device.